Customer service is a crucial component of your business. Quality customer service can generate new sales (after all, it’s cheaper to maintain current clients than to obtain new ones). Plus, an unhappy customer can take to Yelp and other online services to destroy your reputation among your target audience.
The customer service industry was recently revolutionized with the introduction of Chatbots. More specifically, the Facebook Chatbot.
What the Facebook Chatbot Is
The Facebook Chatbot allows you to essentially outsource your customer service interaction to a personalized-to-your-business technological tool. Your company can interact with numerous customers around the world without paying a cent of a customer service representative’s salary. Save big bucks. Make lots of happy customers. It’s a great set-up.
The Prevalence of Chatbots
In today’s digital world, more customers are turning online to seek help. We saw this rise with Twitter and Facebook. Customers didn’t want to be put on hold when they called the customer help line.
So, instead they turned to social media, where their requests were public and companies had an increased incentive to reply quickly and effectively. Companies who dropped the ball in customer service replies were ridiculed online. Companies who excelled were praised (and often gained new followers and customers).
The Chatbot world is growing, with over 11,500 bots developed and many more in the works. More and more big-name companies are jumping on board and using Facebook Chatbots to revolutionize their customer service. It might be time for your company to get on board too!
Using the Facebook Chatbot for Your Business
The Facebook Chatbot is pretty versatile with the right programing. Take advantage of the many features they offer.
- Let customers make a purchase. Customers can place orders within the bot itself, which is especially great for highly mobile target audiences. Pizza Hut, for example, allows customers to place orders through the bot (and reminds them of current promotions).
- Let customers get updated information. Send out updates on your business or your industry. The Wall Street Journal, for example, gives users live stock quotes when they text a set code.
- Connect customers to your products. Some industries, like tech industries, lend themselves well to this integration. HP allows people to print through messenger to an HP printer.
- Help customers make appointments. If you provide a service, the bot can handle appointment times. Sephora noticed an 11% increase in bookings through the bot compared to their other booking methods.
- Provide personalized content. The bot can help customers find relevant articles and information on your site. The Whole Foods bot helps customers find a great recipe by typing in words like “lunch” and “turkey dish”
- Let customers keep a record of the information. The beauty of bot conversations is they are recorded. Some customers can benefit from keeping this information handy. No more frustrating calling a company for assistance, writing down the instructions, then losing the instructions a few days later. Now customers can just pull up the app to refresh their memory.
- Conduct customer analysis. These bots provide a wealth of information and insight into your customers. Go over frequently asked questions. See what customers are struggling with. Find out what they are curious about. It’s like market analysis for much, much cheaper.
The Facebook bot will take time (and, in turn, money) to create and implement. But for many businesses, it can be a valuable investment. Maybe your customer service department is overflowing with the same types of questions. Maybe you want to offer more convenient ways to order products or make appointments. Maybe your target demographic is often online. These are a few reasons to jump on board the Facebook Bot train. If you want assistance with developing a solid Facebook bot marketing strategy, Alpine Small Business Solutions is here for you! Give us a call or shoot us an email today for more information.